When We First Met
by Any Unborn Child
Summary: Drabble/One-Shot. FaiKurogane. It was the memory of it that was so painful…so painful, and yet so very wonderful. Takes place after the epilogue. A continuation of "Between the Bars."


When We First Met ~ a photograph of time

By Any Unborn Child

(A/N: You asked for it, and you got it! This would be a continuation of "Between the Bars", but this time through Kurogane's perspective. Set some time after the epilogue. May contain spoilers. I own nothing.)

_haruka na kako haruka na kyou asu sae mo koko ni_

_The far away past, the far away today, tomorrow comes in clearly._

The only sound at that particular moment was the reverberating thumps of Kurogane tapping his foot impatiently as he leaned against the little house that he, Syaoran, Mokona, and _**that idiot magician**_ were staying at for the time being. What was taking him so long anyway? He said that he was going to be back within half an hour, but forty-five minutes had passed, and so far nothing. The russet sun was slowly setting against the horizon of the quiet village, setting the shadows of the houses to incomprehensible distances.

It was all Kurogane could do not to track Fai down and throttle him himself. All that stupid mage ever seemed to do was try his patience, and it drove him crazy. Fai's carefree, happy-go-lucky demeanor drove him absolutely bonkers, oftentimes having to resort to literally shaking him in order to get him to whatever common sense he had left. Even afterwards, Fai would still have that big stupid grin on his face, and continue teasing and bother Kurogane as if nothing had happened.

He had to admit, there were times when he could have treated Fai kinder. Hell, when their journey with the kids and the creampuff first started, Kurogane didn't pay much mind to Fai. Back then, to him Fai was only an inconvenience, something that he had to get past just so he could get back home and back to Princess Tomoyo. Back then, he was very annoyed at how cryptic and elusive Fai was. Back then, he never gave a straight answer to anything. As of now, Fai was doing better at being straightforward; you'd think he'd have to be, given all that they had been through together. That was some serious shit right there.

Hopefully he'll get here OK, Kurogane thought.

He titled his head back, and tried to take a breath. Within that breath, he got a whiff of the crisp, autumn air that lay still around him, the freshness of the atmosphere taking him as surprise – for most of the day he had been cooped up inside, working on other things with Syaoran and the little furball. Oddly enough, Fai hadn't been around much – around him, anyway. He hadn't been acting like himself lately. It was if his mind had gone to a different place entirely. Usually Fai was all up in Kurogane's business, poking fun at him and asking him to do stupid things. But recently, he had been unusually quiet and unresponsive. It was strange not hearing the nicknames "Kurgie", "Kuro-puu", or even "Kuro-cutie", floating around in their space of conversations.

It was unnerving.

He didn't like to admit, but there were times when he did get concerned about the happy-go-lucky mage. Especially around times like these. He cringed remembering what had happened after Tokyo – Fai's personality had done a 360 there as well. After all that shit happened to him, it was as if Fai had regressed, slowly morphing into someone no one in their right mind would recognize. This also happened soon after they met up with Fai's mentor, Ashura – in all his heart of hearts, Kurogane knew that he was right in killing the motherfucking bastard, even if it meant losing a bit of the strength and power that he made famous. What he had done to Fai was unforgivable. Ashura had instilled a sense of faith and belonging to him, and in a short amount of time he had taken it all away, leaving the mage to die – at least, on the inside – where it mattered the most.

Stupid fuck.

Kurogane's eyes thinned, remembering the events in Celes. In full detail.

That son of a bitch.

He practically broke Fai.

But deep down, Kurogane knew that Fai was already broken by the time Ashura got to him.

All Ashura did was put salt in the wounds that Fai already tried to tend to.

After those events, as well as the events that had preceded (Celes, Infinity, all that other shit), he had changed. Fai was not the magician that the group knew and loved.

Wait------ Loved?

At that word, that one word that Kurogane never thought he'd ever use again, his heart seemed to stop. A sudden shiver went down his spine – goosebumps began to form on his arm. His eyes snapped wide. What did he just think?

Loved?

Loved?

Loved?

_Loved?????_

What the hell????

Where did _love _come from????? Sure, he respected Fai and all that shtick, but love?

_**LOVE????**_

What the hell was this world coming to???

Kurogane put both hands on the sides of his head; he felt a headache coming on. Speaking of coming on…was that what all those stupid nicknames were all about? Come-ons? Wow…just wow.

Well…he had a feeling about those nicknames.

Especially "Kuro-cutie." That was an interesting one. One he wasn't exactly prepared for either. Annoying or not, Fai certainly knew how to stick it to him. And let's not forget when Fai had called him ….Kurogane felt a blush grow on his face as he thought of this one….sexy.

Fai thought he was sexy?

Sexy?

Sexy?

Out of all the nicknames, that was the one that had to be the one that stuck the most. Jeez, now why did he have to go and do that? It's almost as if he _wanted _to flirt with him, as if he was trying to get him to _love_ him or something. Wait.

Damn it. It worked.

Kurogane put his arms down, and subsequently slid down to the earth, sitting in an uncommon stupor. The ground felt rocky as Kurogane's body gained contact with it. His eyes widened even more with a mix of shock and realization. His hands suddenly felt limp, and unnaturally clammy. His body started to feel very heavy, as if he was going to pass out at any second, but he fought for control, he fought to try and gain some power back in the situation. This psychosomatic stuff was taking a toll on him. A surprising toll at that. Usually Kurogane ignored anything that caused him discomfort, but this time…Was it true? Did Kurogane really…

…Love him?

Did he really?

Did he really?

Did He really?

Did He Really?

Damn it.

He did.

Crap.

He smiled slightly to himself – maybe it was about time he admit it – he did hold a special place in his heart for Fai. In all of his forms: the lovable idiot, the clever tactician, the deranged lunatic, the optimistic fighter, the mysterious sage, his feelings for him would never change. Despite everything they had been through together, he couldn't imagine going through life with anyone else.

They were stuck with each other, and they both knew it.

Maybe it was love.

Maybe…just maybe…

His body finally started to calm down. His hands regained their nerves and synapses, his head stopped hurting, and his body became lucid again. It was refreshing, as if a huge burden had been lifted off of his shoulders. Maybe it was his body that was trying to tell him something, trying to tell him that he shouldn't deny his feelings any longer.

Maybe if he told Fai his true feelings, Fai would…actually feel better. Maybe he would be back to his normal self. Maybe…

"Kuro-puu?"

At the mention of his appointed nickname, Kurogane shot straight up, and his dark orbs met Fai's light ones.

He seemed to be in a good mood.

"I'm surprised to see you outside, Kuro-pon. You were cooped in the house all day; I almost forgot what you looked like in the sunlight. Hmmm…you seem a little startled. You Ok, Kuro-rin?"

_**Fin **_


End file.
